Alonso expects no problems with Massa

Fernando Alonso has rebuffed claims there might be friction between him and his new Ferrari team mate in 2010.

Alonso said he thought Felipe Massa’s experience at Ferrari would be useful to himself as a newcomer:

Felipe is a great team mate for me. First of all I think he’s a Latin character like me, speaking Italian with me so the conversation is very fluid. And also I think Felipe has been at Ferrari the last four or five years and I think that when you’re joining a new team that your team mate is not also new in the team because you can get a bit lost with the technical people.Fernando Alonso

A lot has been written already about whether Ferrari are taking a gamble by having two drivers with ‘Latin temperaments’ in their team. Whether or not that’s an accurate representation of their personalities, the potential for conflict is certainly there.

Massa has had a succession of strong team mates compared to which he’s usually done better than expected: Jacques Villeneuve, Michael Schumacher and Kimi R?ā?ńikk?ā?Ānen for example.

Alonso, however, hasn’t had a team mate capable of keeping him honest since he was paired up with Lewis Hamilton three years ago – and we all know how that turned out.

Speaking at Ferrari’s media event at Madonna di Campiglio, Alonso also said he believes his fourth change of F1 team will be the last of his career:

Racing with Ferrari was my objective and I?óŌé¼Ōäóll certainly end my career with this fantastic team. I think that it?óŌé¼Ōäós impossible to find the same passion somewhere else.Fernando Alonso

Well they didn’t seem like the best of pals in that video. But, hey, Alonso’s clearly not the sort of guy who holds a grudge, so I’m sure they’ll be just fine at Ferrari. Even when Massa is beating him…

‘Latin temperaments’ is another way of saying. I will hate you one day, and call you a pig/dog.. (or pig-dog).. but I’ll eat with your family tomorrow night and then we can play some music loudly and dance the evening away.

History will remember him most perhaps, for how he (Alonso) performs at Ferrari. We will see.. :)

It doesn’t really matter if they fall out. Massa’s contract is up so if there are any problems then simple show Felipe the door.
What annoys me a littlwe about 07 is that it’ll al;ways be impossible to know the full story. Whatever actually did happen well it takes two to argue anyway but it was a fascinating year for Mclaren.

I think Alonso was not allow to speak about McLaren for a couple of years after he finished with them, and probably now he can’t be bothered. Who knows… to me that’s ok; he is still not that naif to write his autobiography…

“As for Alonso having problems with Massa, well, I donĀ“t think so. Fernando is way better, his history as a driver confirms it, and Ferrari hired him to be the central part of the team, the benchmark.”

Ferrari hired him to be a ‘team player’, so he’d better do as he’s told!

I’m actually surprised how many seem a bit on the negative side with this pairing. I think it’s excellent and the best in years. Two Latins pushing each other the full season, a deep rivalry and passion but I seriously doubt it’ll spill over into anything more. Frankly I can’t wait

I think Alonso’s stint at Macca has thought him quite a bit. I actually think he will be a team player and support Ferrari for better and for worse. He comes across as being little more grounded these days.

Alonso expects no problems from Massa because he knows that about halfway through the year he will outperform Massa and receive the number one status at Ferrari.Building the team around Schumacher worked for them.Having Massa and Kimi on equal status did not.Fernando is the type that you can build a team around and that is the formula for Ferrari.That is why Fred is there.

To be honest, I want to see sparks fly this year. Still not completely convinced by what Fernando claims, but only he knows how he feels about having Massa as his team mate. The key here is that Alonso has tasted the bad situation of having a team mate who is clearly well intergrated with the team and fast with it. Its too easy to forget that Alonso prior to 2007 had been the golden egg to Briatore’s goose. Nobody can seriously say that either Trulli or Fisichella stood a chance whilst at Renault. So there is truth in that.
I agree with Fernando on Massa’s experience at Ferrari. He came within yards of winning the championship in 2008, and drove some great races that year. He has matured and showed great poise and dignity when Hamilton beat him in Brazil, when lesser mortals would have probably completely cracked up. Massa has proven his skills, but also has flaws too, not unlike Hamilton.
The Silverstone race of 2008 highlighted these flaws for all to see, and event that saw Felipe spin his Ferrari as if it were a Las Vegas roulette wheel. I felt so sorry for the guy, he really struggled. Have I ever seen Alonso do that? No, and I don’t expect him too. I think, overall, Massa will cause Alonso problems on certain occasions, but on the whole, Fernando will beat him. The key here is, if Massa is beaten fair and square, he will help Fernando in the championship, as he did Kimi Raikkonen back in 2007. There is an honourable side to Massa that I like, not unlike Rubens Barrichello.
Also, Ferrari is not McLaren. The two teams and poles apart in terms of attitude and style. Fernando has experience with the Italian way if life, and speaks fluent Italian, so I think he will fit in just fine. Just aslong as they are both given a chance, everything will be fine!

āAlonso expects no problems with Massaā
because (beating)massa isn’t a problem for him.

I think the situation is going to be very similar to 2007. Now substitute Alonso in place of Kimi. Massa’s challenge would fade around middle of the season and last 3 to 4 races there would be no chance/sense and he only going to support Alonso. Webber vs Vettel situation is another example of what i think is most probably going to happen with Ferrari drivers. Alosno in place of Vettel.

this is “what i think is most probably going to happen with Ferrari drivers”

Massa is surely very good and improved a lot since 2007 but this is what i think/predict NOW, at this moment, is going to be the case. Maybe after the first 3 to 4 races situation would be very different but we all are allowed to predict. Isn’t it?

Am I cynical for actually hoping there are problems a little (Also with Hamilton and Button)? F1 gets a boost of intrigue when rivalries bubble up to the surface. The argument between Sutil and Truli? The argument from Flanders video above? It makes things all the more spicy. Better than how things have been in the last couple of years with everyone nice and polite to each other. A 1 on 1 battle between two drivers who are known to hold contempt for each other is drama at it’s finest.

I don’t think there will be problems – well no more than the usual tensions which flare up between team mates. The situation at Ferrari in 2010 is very different to the one at McLaren in 2007. Not to mention that both Nando & Flippy are three years older & wiser, and both have suffered fairly humbling experiences in that timeframe.

At any rate, much improved that Flippy is or rather was (we don’t know how he’ll fare after the accident), I still don’t think he will be able to hold a candle to Nando, so the age old question of who is numero uno will be somewhat moot.

It’s not about “Latin” temperaments, whatever that means. It’s about Alonso combining paranoia and insecurity with, shall we say, a healthy self-regard, and a need, whether he’s cracking walnuts or driving an F1 car, to be the centre of everyone’s attention. It is also about Massa never backing down from a fight when he sees one, and having become if anything a bit more touchy since his bang on the head.

And further, it’s about S. Domenicali being the nominal team principal without the force of personality to corral his two drivers, which will leave Three-Car Monty to try do it, leading to Domenicali sulking, and the atmosphere in the garage declining even further.

Even noted disciplinarian Ron Dennis couldn’t keep Alonso in line — with him and all the other combustibles packed into the garage, the result is going to be excitingly combustible. Not so exciting for the tifosi, though.

I don’t think Alonso is as bad as you put it and Ron or Lewis that good. What do you think is going to happen between Lewis and Jenson? Are we all asuming that Hamilton is gonna walk over Button? Maybe there’ll be some “status” fight in the Mc garage. Jenson is the current Champion and has had a team behind him last year. Is he going to take the Mclaren adoration for Hammo that well?

I don’t think Keith’s use of the term ‘latin temperament’ is racist or discriminatory, since Alonso himself used the term in his interview. Keith is just paraphrasing the quote.

Besides, the definition of racism is the idea that one’s own race is superior and has the right to rule or dominate others. I don’t see how referring to what is effectively a personality trait can be considered racist.

The idea that Alonso and Massa are going to fall out is just wishful thinking. Both know how important it is to get Ferrari back at the top, and how damaging it will be to the team if they start fighting each other. Alonso’s problem at McLaren was that he was misled into thinking he was going to be the number one driver – at Ferrari he knows the score and the team will be stronger for that.

I don’t think there will be any problems at all. Ferrari hired Alonso because they want to return to their winning ways and see him as the best person to do it. They’re not going to alienate him the way McLaren did because it would be counter productive to all parties. While I think Massa is good enough to beat Alonso on a few occasions, Alonso is so consistant over a whole season I think he’ll end up on top.

Ferrari handled Kimi and Massa very well. They should handle Massa and Alonso with composure as well.

But the job can get tricky towards the end of the season.

In 2007 and 2008, Felipe and Kimi respectively were “out-of-form” for a couple of races before the final 3-4 races. This made the job easier for Ferrari. I think Ferrari are hoping for similar things to happen.

A native Spanish speaker – used to living in Britain and speaking English, talks to a native Portugese speaker – who spent time in teams where he spoke English and still speaks English to his British engineer… and they’re going to choose to converse in Italian – their 3rd language? One for the cameras there Fernando…

In fairness, I believe Italian was Alonso’s 2nd language, but I’m sure his English has overtaken it by now. Why do I suspect if we get any eavesdropping microphones they’ll be speaking in Spanglish?

Alonso believed he was the fastest driver in F1 bar none when he joined McLaren in 2007, he could give 0.6 secs to the car, so he said. So confident was he that he did not look too closely at the other driver and to the fact that McLaren do not have a number one and two hierarchy. After all, the other guy is just a rookie āhow could he be faster than meā.
Trouble was Hamilton was one tenth of a second faster than he, right from the off! Alonso said that he was sometimes number two in 2007, if he was it was into the second half of that season (It certainly was not around Monaco time) and he was well behind Hamilton on points. So why shouldnāt he be, thatās what all the other teams do! So he blows a gasket like he will do at Ferrari if Massa gets ahead on points during the later part of the season. Mind you, there was the added humiliation in 2007 getting beaten by a rookie when you were the reining double World Champion.

you are obviously a Hamilton fan and looking at history thru rose-tinted glasses. 2007 Belgian Grand Prix, remind me where the two McLaren drivers qualified and finished.. Alonso was fighting against his own team as Ron Dennis famously let slip at the end of the year.. I got nothing against Hamilton but I try to be objective…

I think Derek does have a vaild reason to bring up hamilton – no matter what you say about Hamilton’s talents, Nandos was a double world champ, he had even beaten Schumi to a world championship.

Its not unreasonable to think that nandos expected to murder Hamilton heading into that season – and equally i can also understand why he would have been extremely fruistrated when Hamilton acheived what he achieved in that rookie year.

I dont think Nandos has demonstrated that he has actually grown up since then (see Singapore scandal for case in point) and thats why i believe that nexts years championship is wide open!!